Margaret Felber by Nigel A JAMES
On
the Right track!
Passages
through life are often a question of making the most of things as
they come. Many people are good at it, few are excellent, and those
who understand this art of survival are the ones who can see the
promise in even the meanest of work.
For
them, there is no job too low. They are prepared to do anything and
everything; it's all to do with survival! These people are humble,
and this is their strength! And, one such person who has been down
the highways and byways of life and succeeded is Margaret Felber.
And, she has the strength of great steel!
It
was just after the war.
Things were hard. And Margaret was hungry and looking for work.
Vienna was rebuilding, and, at the top of the list was the public
transport system. This was not only good for the city, but perfect
for Margaret as well.
And,
so she
became a tram conductress. In those days, a very sought after job.
Not only was the money good, there was a smart dark blue uniform,
too! But, there was more to it than just selling tickets and
smiling. There were other sides, too, and they weren’t always easy!
There
are two things that
stand-out in Margaret's mind. The first, and perhaps the hardest, was
the coupling, uncoupling and re-coupling of the rear carriages at
the beginning and end of each journey. This wasn’t so bad in the
summer, but, in the winter with its icy temperatures and early
afternoon darkness, the lifting of the heavy and dirty and often
freezing cold hooks and chains was something that nobody envied. But
that was life and all part of the job.
The
second thing she looks back on are the moments of fun! They were
always great
and late Saturday nights were the best. Margaret's route, the line
43, connected the outlying wine district of Neuwaldegg with the
centre of town. Many of the passengers- if not most - were still
over-merry and over-happy as they boarded the tram for a
late-night-ride-home of laughing, joking and very loud singing; and,
more often than not, Margaret broke all of the rules and joined in
with the fun!
And
fun makes life easy and nice.
Margaret has gathered together the threads of her life in a book. And
it is very, very interesting. In it are the people she met and the
good and bad times which she had! But she was happy! And all
because she kept off of the high roads of life, and travelled to
where she is now on the low ways instead!
